Latest news with #F.W.Webb
Boston Globe
14 hours ago
- General
- Boston Globe
At 80, he's a legend in plumbing supply circles. But what happens when he retires?
Get Love Letters: The Newsletter A weekly dispatch with all the best relationship content and commentary – plus exclusive content for fans of Love Letters, Dinner With Cupid, weddings, therapy talk, and more. Enter Email Sign Up 'Caino?' said a plumber who, on a recent morning, was being helped by the man himself. 'One of my instructors said, 'If you ever have a question you can't answer, there's a guy in Watertown.'' Advertisement Jim Cain tried to retire once, but the company asked him to come back. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff 'Caino?' said that instructor, Nicholas Nocifora, of Wakefield's 'Caino?' said Drew Pilarski, a 48-year-old colleague. 'A lot of stuff he knows predates the internet. AI has not yet been trained on his brain.' It was about 8:30 on a recent morning — two hours into Cain's shift. He was stationed at his familiar spot behind the counter, a worn brown company baseball cap on his head, self-fashioned fingerless gloves keeping his hands warm. Advertisement Plumbers came and went, enjoying plumbing humor (one knee-slapper involved tank-to-bowl gaskets), and it felt like the setting for a genial sitcom: 'The Office,' maybe, but without the snark. 'I've been doing this for 53 years,' Cain said as he proceeded to unspool a life story that felt almost sepia-toned, though there he was, telling it in real time. Jim Cain helped plumber David Waldron as he looked for a shower diverter at the F.W. Webb plumbing supply store in Watertown. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff That life? It started with a role model — a beloved uncle, a farmer who could fix anything — and moved along to a high school wrestling career, cut short when his family relocated from one small Oklahoma town to another. There was an initial attempt to stay out of the Vietnam War, which eventually led to deployment at Air Force bases in Quy Nhon and Nha Trang, where he repaired helicopter radios. Then came the return from war; a night out drinking beer with buddies that turned into a spontaneous road trip to Boston; a marriage; and, with it, the need for a regular salary. He took a warehouse job delivering bathtubs, sinks, and other bulky items for a Waltham hardware store. He was eventually 'talked into' moving to the plumbing section and later jumped at the chance to take a job at Watertown Supply, which was eventually acquired by F.W. Webb. And, well, here he is, joyfully seeing life through a plumbing-supply guy's eye. 'Every place I go, to a restaurant or wherever, if I go to the bathroom, I'll think, 'Oh, that's a Delta faucet or a Sloan flush valve,'' he said. In a culture that rewards self-promotion and emotionally charged content, Cain is a more old-fashioned influencer. 'TikTok I could care less about,' he said. Advertisement His followers are in the real world, on their backs, in a crawl space, feeling blindly for a slow leak, or squatting to see behind a garbage disposal. Jim Cain arranged copper pipes at the F.W. Webb plumbing supply store in Watertown. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff One of them is Matthew Waller, the owner of Waller bought steam vents from Cain, which solved the heat problem, but not the secondary clanging issue. Soon after, Waller returned to Webb for something else, 'and Caino stopped me outside.' Cain had recalled the existence of a vent made by some obscure company with an aperture that allowed for better air flow and, with it, silence. And it was less expensive. 'He knew there was a fix and no one else would have,' Waller said. But as crucial as plumbing may be, there's more to life. Cain is a husband (for the third time), a dad, a grandfather, a brother, and a man who enjoys a good joke. Taped to the plexiglass shield in front of his workstation (a COVID holdover) is a cartoon from his sister that shows an executioner who's built a bowling alley lane below the guillotine. 'No matter what the job,' the caption reads, 'always try to make it fun.' Jim Cain searched through the hundreds of bins for a faucet part in the supply room at the F.W. Webb plumbing supply store in Watertown. He knows everything about plumbing and will relentlessly find a part for loyal customers. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff On a recent morning, during a brief lull in business, Pilarski — Cain's coworker and enthusiastic publicist — took the opportunity to tell more of his idol's life story. 'Caino once wrestled Advertisement 'Brisco kicked my butt,' Cain said, not unhappily. He pulled up his sweatshirt to display a big belt buckle with an image of two men wrestling. 'A tradition since 1922,' it reads. 'Perry Wrestling.'' So, is he planning on retiring anytime soon? In 2022, Cain missed a few months' work after he passed out while grocery shopping at Market Basket in Billerica and had to have a pacemaker put in. But he couldn't wait to get back. 'I got bored as hell being at home,' he said. Asked what he longed to get back to, he said the people — and the parts. Beth Teitell can be reached at
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
2025 Business Showcase, Skills Expo, Marketing Summit: Seacoast business news
ROCHESTER — The Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce will hold its 2025 Business Showcase, underwritten by Breezeline, on Thursday, April 24, from 4-6 p.m. at the James W/ Foley Memorial Community Center at 150 Wakefield St., Rochester. For participating businesses, there will be a Business-To-Business networking hour at 3 p.m., then the doors open to the public at 4 p.m. Elevate your business with the ultimate opportunity to grow your brand, build connections, and reach new customers. Join local businesses displaying their products and services. The 2025 Business Showcase will provide a venue in which to learn about various businesses from multiple industries. The participant fee for businesses is $100 and includes table space. There are sponsorship opportunities available for this event, some of which include table space. There is no cost for the public to attend. For additional information or to register as a business participant or attendee, visit: or call: 603-332-5080, or email: events@ RYE — Bring Back the Trades, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering the next generation of skilled tradespeople, announced its upcoming Skills Expo at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., on Saturday, October 25, 2025. This landmark event is made possible through a dynamic partnership with F.W. Webb, the largest wholesale distributor of plumbing, heating, HVAC, and industrial supplies in the Northeast. The BBTT Skills Expo presented by F.W. Webb is set to be a transformative experience for middle school and high school students, their parents, and adults interested in learning about the trades. The event is designed to engage, inspire, and inform, showcasing the exciting, technology-driven world of skilled trades through hands-on exhibits and interactive displays. Event Highlights: Interactive Exhibits: Businesses from various trades will host engaging, science-fair-style displays that encourage attendees to roll up their sleeves and explore. Engaging Experiences: Outside the stadium, attendees can get up close with cutting-edge equipment, tools, and vehicles used in today's trades. Guest Appearances: Special appearances by industry leaders and trade advocates, with a keynote discussion to be announced soon. Giveaways and Prizes: Attendees will have the chance to win exciting giveaways, including co-branded items from F.W. Webb and BBTT. Family-Friendly Activities: Designed to engage participants of all ages, the event provides opportunities for parents and community members to explore career paths alongside students. The BBTT Skills Expo is part of Bring Back the Trades' mission to reduce the stigma surrounding trade careers, educate communities about the opportunities they provide, and inspire individuals to pursue rewarding, high-paying, and high-demand jobs. For more information, visit DURHAM – The University of New Hampshire's Marketing & Advertising Club, a collegiate chapter of the American Marketing Association, announced its 9th Annual Marketing Summit. This highly anticipated event will bring together industry leaders, students, faculty, and business professionals for an exciting day of networking and insightful discussions on the current trends in marketing and advertising. The event will be held at UNH Paul College in Durham, on Friday, March 7, from 1-5 p.m. The Summit will feature prominent industry leaders from top-tier companies, including Planet Fitness, Garnet Hill, Forrester, Panera Bread, Stonyfield, Timberland, Fidelity, Chewy, Digitas, Area 23, IAPP, Havas Media Network, and more. These industry experts will share their expertise, providing a valuable opportunity for attendees to gain real-world insight into the rapidly changing landscape of marketing and advertising. This year's theme is Strength in Community: Powering Inclusion & Impact. The keynote speaker features Jamie Medeiros, Chief Brand Officer of Planet Fitness. Ms. Medeiros has dedicated her career to Planet Fitness, establishing elaborate campaigns that foster an inclusive community across the nation. The 9th Annual Marketing Summit is open to the public and is free of charge and offers the perfect setting to connect, learn, and collaborate. To register and for more information, visit: MAINE/NEW HAMPSHIRE — Kennebunk Savings has a powerful culture of volunteerism, and their 330 employees are celebrating a grand total of 11,078 hours volunteered in 2024. 'It always takes a few weeks to get it all tallied up because we all do so much,' said Rachel Peter, the Bank's volunteer coordinator. "We pick up rakes and shovels, we deliver meals, we run registration desks at events. We sew, we cook, we clean, and we even help balance budgets. And we have fun doing it. Even the budgets." Alysha Bettencourt, who works at the Bank's Hampton branch, volunteered with Hope on Haven Hill in 2024 as part of an initiative led by the Bank's Women's Collective employee resource group. Hope on Haven Hill provides residential and outpatient support for pregnant and parenting women in New Hampshire. Brady Randall, in the Bank's Commercial Credit department, joined the board of directors for the Arundel Conservation Trust (ACT) in 2024. Deb Adams, who works in the bank's Social Responsibility department, likes volunteering with big groups of her fellow employees. In 2024, she participated in the Granite United Way's Day of Caring, cleaning up Camp Gundalow for the season with her coworkers. Maureen Gaudette works in Cash Management at Kennebunk Savings. In 2024 she participated in Mary's Walk, an event to raise funds for the Maine Cancer Foundation. Christa Hughes, in Lending, and Valerie Hale, from the Bank's training department, volunteer with Another Chance Animal Rescue in North Berwick. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: 2025 Business Showcase, Skills Expo, Marketing Summit: Seacoast business news
